Graphophone



3 "heetshsheet 1.

(No Medel.)

'RAEOHONE.

@wanted @cfm 13, 1896.

JAMAQ/ (No Model.) im I 3 Sheets-Sheet 2. T. H. MACDONALD. GRAPEOPHONE.

Patnte Oct. 1 3, 1896.

/ [A @jm/777441 OMW diurne Fureur @einen THOMAS il. liiACDONALD, OF BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT, ASSlGNOR T PHE AMERlCAN GRAPHOPHONE COMPANY, OF WEST VIRGINIA GRAPHOPHONE EEGEFICATIGI? forming part of Letters Patent No. 569,290, dated October .1.3, 1896. Application and November 2.1895. serial no. 567.729.- on man 'o @ZZ whom it may concern.-

'leit known that LTHOMASII. MACDONALD, of Bridgeport, Connecticut, have invented new and useful improvements in Graphophones, which are fully set forth in the following specification.

rthis invention relates to apparatus for recording and reproducing sounds, generally known as graphophones,and its object is to 1o improve such apparatus in point of efficiency and convenience in use.

The present improvements relate more particularly to the carriage which supports the recorder and reprodneer, (and also the shaving-knife, when one is employed,) to the support of the mandrel or tablet-holder, and to the starting and stopping mechanism.

ihe carriage slides, as heretofore, on a tube fixed rigidly in the side frames and inzo closing the feed-screw. A handle and a device (such as a anni) actuated thereby are provided, one movement of which hoth lifts the reproducer or recorder from contact with the record-cylinder and also disengages the feed-screw. This improvement has several advantages. lt avoids the necessity of touching the recorder or reproducerfor the purpose of put-ting them into and out of operative position, itprovides a positive lock for 3c the recorder or reproducor when out of position and permits them to be let down easily upon. the record, (the pitch of the cam heineT graduah) and it furnishesahandle by which the carriage and parts supported by it can he slid along,r the guidetuhe.

` lieretofore one `nearing of the mandrel or tablet-holder hns heen Carried by a vertically pivoted swin'f'ug arm, and a locking device has neen pro .ded to lock this arm in place, .go two inovernentsheingrequired. Such swinging arm has a journalhearing on one end only, and it has neen found in course of time that through wear on this hearing; the perfeet alinement of the arm is disturhethre- .-,5 sulting in a corresponding lteration of alinernent of the mandrel. This defect isavoided by the Stringing gaie hereinafter described. l?nrthermore,'iluougli carelessness or inattention the user ofA the instrument often fails to 5o swing the arm 'completely around, and consequently in removing the fragile record-cylin der from the 'mandrel its end or side strikes the arm und is broken or marred. This has been a fruitful sourceof broken records. According to this invention the movable bean 55 ing of thc tablet-holder is carried hy au end gate, which when unlocked und partly turned will fall by its own weight down and which automatically locks itself when raised inte position. 6o

Special improvements in the construction of the latch are provided whereby a tight connection is insured and rattling prevented.

Another improvement consist-s in errang ing a bearing close to the fixed end bearing of the mandrel with which intermediate bearing the shaft'of the mandrel is ordinarily not in Contact. lThen, however, the end gateror support is removed and the mandrel is unsupported at that cud, its shaft is brought by 7o the weight ofthe mandrel into cont-act with the intermediate hearing, which thus acts as a bra-ke and stops the shaft. Thus the withdrawal of the support at one end of the mandrel for the purpose of removing and replac- 7 5 ing a cylinder automatically arrests the mandrel. This improvement is useful in small machines driven hy spring-motors easily arrested by friction and would not he employed with-electric motors. 8o

The ordinary start and si op mechanism has been improved to give the clutch a double action, so that in one position it engages the mandrel with n running shaft and in the other` not onlydiscngages it, but positively stops aud holds it; This imlrovement has .been found advantageous heed-use with heavy tehlets the momentum would keep the tablet and cylindcrin motion after disengagement of the snmc by the clutch.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating what is deemed the best embodiment of my improvements in a practical machine, Figure l is a plan view, Fig'. 2,' a front elevation, partly in section, showing a diiierent 'form of 95' driving-gearing; Fig. 3, an end elevation 'from the left of Fig. l. Fig. L is a transverse sectional View through the carriage, and Fig. 5 is a, detail in elevation of the carriage.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the roo rame, supportin g at its front the usual guidetuhe a., longitudinally slotted oh its under `is arranged et about the middle of Y ing his bored through the side and inclosing the feed-screw a. Sleeve B', each having a semicirculer .seatfrestingQ agamst and together surrounding the tribe;z to which they are fastened by suitable sere ws.

A leg b' depends from the carriage and is forked at .its lower extremity to embrace a ruil L2 on the frame A. To take up all weer and insure a close contact of the rail-and leg` b thereby preventing even the slightest oseillation of the carriage, which would be' detriment-al to the perfect operation of the re-V corder or reproducer carried thereby, a pin b, pressed bye spring bf, passes through an opening 1u the leg and bears'sg'ainst the side o'theraiL 1 d A. ring c, having'camsnrfeces c c and s projection con'ifs periphery, is arranged con- 'centrically about and bears against the signore.

li'and has an operating-handle c. This ring the tube und works in suitable lrecesses or grooves in the pmtsB and B' of the carriage, as clearly shown inthe drawings. A divided segmental mit d yfor communicating movement from the feed-screw a' to the cerriageis located in e recess in the bottoln of the semicirc'ular seat on the lower part B' of the 'carriage and pro? jects upwardly through the sleeve inst thel same time spanning the ring c, against which it is held by'springfpressure, scid pressure also holding it in engagement with' the feedscrew during the eperetion of the machine.

A sound-conducting passage' E through part B of the carriage has otite front end e nozzle e for the rubber tube Sigi: shown) and at its rear end a pivoted tubu joint e', over which the recorder or reproducer F is adapted to slip in a definite position determined by cross-barf and notches e2..

g is a pintle sliding in s. suitable wey, bearling at one end against e projection es onjihe joint e' and at' its other end against the peripheral surface of the ring. e, whereby it is moved to liftthe reproducer or recorder when' desirable, as hereinafter described. An openmetel of the frame above and opening into the passage E et one fend; in which is housed a very sensitive spring h', secured'to 'a plug 4h2 at one endend at its other end connecting .with a pin e4 on thev joint e, projecting into ihe opening. Such an arrangement is desirable when the weight 01' the recorder or reprodncer is excessive, to regulate the pressure with which the instru- ,ment in use rests against the tablet.

Indescribing the operation of theim'provementsabove -referred to I will lirst call ettention to the stop action of the projection c, limiting movement of the ring c by engagement withthe parte Bnnd B of the carriage when'in the positions shown in Figs. 3 and 4,

respectively. In the latter position both the pin-tie esand the segmental nut (Z are in con tact Tof facilitate the esand for about half-wey senese" with the periphem surface 0f meemaken part of' the ring vc, thus lioldngsnd'locking.

'the recording or reproducing 'instrument in 7o its elevated position'out of contact with therecord-cylinder) and the segmental' nut out.

'ringe free to be moved along the tube'oby grasping the handle-o4.

of engagementwith screw a leaving the c'r- 75 Uponlifting thehandleto the position shown in Fig. '3, sitter having moved the csr- .riege tothe desired position`,`tl1e pii.itle"'g1i`sA allowed to ride down the cam-surface c' and the nutd down the cem-surface'c,'permit 8o ting the recorder or 'reproducerto descend gradually to contact with the tablet and the L nut to be elevated feed-screw.

A shaving knife orc'utierc forelittlng down 85' v the tablette remove an old recordand present e new surface to the recorder is' mounted on the end of e stem fi', enlarged in diameter at its' outer end, forminga'shoulder z". About to engagementwith. the"H this nem and. exea, ma chamber extenaingzga Y transversely through the part' B of the car-. riego is e. sleeve "is, split along its under side along its upper side and having an interior. shoulder z; Thissleeve lies an interior diameter approximatslightiy overlaps. '.A. spring ks'nrrounds the smaller part of stem i, being confined between 95, ing Ithat of the larger part of stem zf,.wh1ch 1t the shoulders-timid '124 and exerting its tension I to force the stem to the right, as shown in Fig. 4, and. hold the cutter away from con-1 tact with the tablet. To prevent rotetion oil. the stem and consequent alteration inthe position of the eutter,.splines or lugs 1"; i' thereon engage; respectively, in the slots formedv bythe sfplits'in the sleeve iylug 1' also 'making contact with a screw k'- to limit the movement-of the stem under the tension of the spring. A' cap ordeiiector k2, through' which the cutter projects, is secured on the inner end of stem 12'. Y v

When it is desired 4to bring the cutter to an' .operative position, the stem i' is pushed'ior-- werd to contact with the tablet against the tension of the spring, in which position'it is gripped and held through the 'actionof a screw l, abutting against one 'side of sleeve and adapted to be manipulated'by'a lever l', carrying astop-arm t, which makes contact with sleeve b to compress the sleeve against the enlarged portion of the stem 'i'. During' the operation of the shavingdcnife it is preff. erable to remove the recorder' or reproducerfror'n thel joint e before' raising-the handle c* to throw the carriage into gear, or a moreA rapid movement can be eected by'hand. i I will next describe that part of my invention relating to the end-gaie arrangement for. one of the nmndrel-beerings. .As hereinbe-. fore stated, one of the bearings Imsvbeen carried by e. vswinging arm adapted to swing rearwardly in a horizontal plane and having n rocking lever swinging ins vertical plane, two movements being required to closcnnd 4. eeeyeeo engaging in the slot or groove forned by the split inthe sleeve, substantially es described.

7 In s, grepixophone,the combination with the manrel, of agote carrying one 'bearing 5 thereof and adapted to dropone. horizontal axis when opened, and means for lookin gseid gatein n closed position, substantially as described.

8. The combination with the mandrel, of e,

lo 'gatefcarrying'one bearing thereof and aapt ed to drop 'on a horizontal axis when opened,

and en automatically-operating latch on said gate f or locking it 'in its closed posi tion, subetnntiellyl aedescribed. x5 9. The Acombination with the mandrel, of a,

getecerrying one bearing thereof, a, spring-- actua-ted latch-for automatic-elly locking said gate in its closed position end adopted to engage in a ,m'ingnotch in the frame of the yzo machine, snbstentielly es described.

10. In a. graphophone the combination with e mandrel end its shft, of bearings one sto.-

tionnrv and the other movable, uponwhich seid ehaft normally rests, a. gate cnrfying said m ovable hearing, and en auxiiarybsring in z 5 proximity io the stationary bearing and with .which said shaft makes engagement to arrest and prevent rotation of the mandrel W118i seid gate is open, substantially as described.

11. In a graphophone the combination with 3o a tubular pivoted joint to which the recorder or reproducer is adapted to be connected, and l through whiohthesonnd is-colnnmnicated of a spring connected-therewith, of a tension not suicient to overcome but acting tol di- 35 minish the force of gravity by which said instrument is held in contact with the recordcylindei, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof 'I have signed this specification in the presence of'two subsorib.- 4o ing Witnesses.

THOMAS H. MACDONALD.

"Witnesses:

' CLEMENT MARCH, G. L. HUBBELL. 

